umami – Jellybeans in the City

If you’re on the lookout for the what’s new and absolutely delish, The Tasteless Food Group’s got something for you.

Drop by Robinsons Magnolia to immerse yourself in a new dining concept – Public Eatery!

Taking inspiration from subway lines, this elevated foodcourt destination is marked by energy and movement, from the stylish and modern decor to the airy open dining area layout bathed in ample natural light.

Above all, Public Eatery brings the metro’s foodies to the express lane towards good eats by bringing together a diverse collection of dining options – covering a wide range of flavors and cuisines – in one convenient location.

Ready to go on a flavorful journey? Get all aboard and take your tastebuds for a ride with these exciting food stations at Public Eatery:

Anyhow

Our favorite ihaw-ihaw goes international! Inspired by the Pinoys’ penchant for various kinds grilled meats, Anyhow offers inihaw any way you like it! Here, your can make your own satisfying meal by combining your choice of smokey grilled meat – such as this succulent US Beef Belly – with equally flavorsome rice and sides.

Bad Bird

Famous for fully embracing umami flavors, Bad Bird goes all out in using MSG in its natural and processed forms: dashi, mushroom powder, furikake, miso, and more, all to produce that complex savory taste that tickles the taste buds. Check out Bad Bird’s Fish and Chips made with meaty white fish coated in its signature umami beer batter, and served with fries and tartare sauce.

Bookoh

Even the humble buko juice gets a make-over: at Bookoh, coconut water gets mixed with various syrups and sinkers to produce a tasty thirst quencher. This Coconut Pandan Gula Melaka Juice, for instance, combines buko juice with panda syrup, nata de coco, grass jelly and Gula Melaka, a type of palm sugar made from the sap of flower buds from the coconut palm.

FRNK

Try out FRNK’s artisanal beverages that accentuate the natural flavor of milk through the addition of flavors from chocolates, teas, fruits and other ingredients. It also produces a variety bakery items that pair well with its milk beverages such as its plant-based Coffee Almond Doughnut that complements its Frozen Kokoa drink.

Konbini Karaage

In Japan, convenience stores are more than just places to grab some essentials at all hours. They also provide quick access to tasty munchables such as this Karaage, Japan’s crispy and yummy take on the fried chicken, served hot and fresh – quite conveniently – in a cute takeout box.

Le Chon

Chef Happy Ongpauco-Tiu celebrates savory roasted meats that define Pinoy celebrations at her newest venture, Le Chon. Aside from the hallmark lechon baboy and lechon manok, Le Chon also serves other meats, deliciously roasted lechon-style, such as this Lechon Angus Beef Belly.

Merry Moo

Our sweltering summer heat calls for some ice cream, doesn’t it? Well, chill out with some icy handcrafted confection that comes from the milk of happy cows at Merry Moo. Go for creamy and velvety scoops of Merry Moo ice cream richly flavored with Auro Milk Chocolate finished with a generous amount of roasted cacao nibs for an additional burst of cacao.

Morse

Perk up your day with a cuppa joe from the passion project of Mike Holaschke, the Austrian blogger behind “Making It Happen.” Power great conversations with your companions with The One, made with a shot of espresso topped with thick salted cream and sea salt.

New York, Cubao

Award-winning and best-selling cookbook author Chef Myke “Tatung” Sarthou curates an array of much-loved, down-home, and “Simpol” Pinoy fare we all know and love, remixed for variety and rediscovery. NYC’s Tocino Ribs brings a hefty serving of salt-cured pork ribs, perfect for a very heavy breakfast with fried rice and egg.

OK Bob

Satisfy your cravings for Middle Eastern dishes with OK Bob‘s fresh takes on classics such as kebabs, falafel, hummus and curries, with recipes and methods perfected by Chefs Decker Gokioco and Jorge Mendez. How about wowing your friends with a towering serving of Hanging Kebab comprised of a skewer of grilled beef hanging over a bed of buttered basmati rice topped with grilled tomatoes.

Samyan

Bite into Authentic Thai streetfood, curated by Chef Third “Ton” Tassanakajohn and produced by Chef Gabriel Ong, at Samyan. Named after the bustling Sam Yan Market in Bangkok, Samyan brings exotic yet comforting tastes and textures of Thai street cuisine, such as in this Khao Pad Pu, also known as Crab Fried Rice.

Seafood Oyster Bar

It’s quite shuck-ing how oysters have become a big hit in food halls. As evidenced by Seafood Oyster Bar, foodies have gone crazy over the briny taste and silky mouthfeel of oysters – whether raw with spiced vinegar, doused with garlic butter, heated with a few drops of tabasco or as an oyster shot – or even Baked and topped with Miso Custard. Because, why not?

Thomson Road

Savor the flavors of Singapore at Thomson Road, inspired by the Lion City’s famous shophouses and hawker stands. Chef Johanne Wee dishes out fresh takes on Singapore’s much-loved street dishes, such as this spicy yet comforting Seafood Laksa.

Ten by Tsukemen

Sate your hunger with a mouthwatering bowl of ramen that scores a 10 out of 10. Chef Noel Mauricio helms the kitchen, taking his cues from the minimalist Japanese culture, to produce ramen bowls such as this Tonkotsu Premium, made with pork bone broth and ramen noodles topped with grilled chashu, aji tamago, sesame seeds and negi. Be sure to get the Richer broth, that’s the chef’s recommendation!

The Bev Bar

Who says you can’t make pour decisions? You can do just that at The Bev Bar which serves a wide assortment of refreshments to pair with your orders from other Public Eatery stations. Chef Patrick Go creates mouthwatering drinks such as this scrumptious Choco Chocnut Shake.

So let this be my Notice to the Public: Go full steam ahead on your next foodie adventure at Public Eatery. With so many cuisines to explore, you can always count on a flavorful and satisfying food trip.

Public Eatery is located at the Fourth Floor, New Wing, Robinsons Magnolia, Aurora Boulevard corner Doña Hemady Street, Barangay New Manila, Quezon City, open daily from 10am to 9pm. For inquiries, call +63 976 2810277 or email publiceatery@tasteless.ph.

For more information on Public Eatery, visit its website or follow it on Facebook and Instagram.

Disclosure: I attended a food tasting held at this venue. Food items mentioned here were served at no cost to facilitate this feature.

Want to jazz up your home-cooked meals or adjust the taste of your restaurant-bought meal according to your personal taste?

We Pinoys have a ready solution for it: our condiments!

Whether in the form of dipping sauces (“sawsawan”) or marinades (“pinagbabaran”), we are firm believers of further improving the flavor of our food with the addition of condiments.

One condiment that I think does not get enough credit – not being celebrated as much in the local food scene as the ubiquitous patis, toyomansi and sukang pinakurat – is the liquid seasoning. A soy-based sauce that imparts a unique blend of saltiness, sweetness and umami (savory and meaty taste), liquid seasoning imparts the flavors that appeal to the Filipino palate to various foodstuffs. It is usually sold in small bottles or containers that are easy to store and retrieve from our pantries whenever we need to add some flavor to our viands.

Add to the rub and use a extra seasoning for Baked Pork Ribs

Ellie Liquid Seasoning, marketed and distributed by Benby Group of Companies, deserves some of the limelight in the Filipino kitchen.

Here are reasons why it deserves the title of #BidaSaKusina:

It’s very versatile. It can be used in a variety of dishes, whether as a marinade for meat and seafood, as a condiment for rice, noodles, and vegetables, and as a flavoring agent for soups, stews, and sauces.
It has low-fat content. Ellie Liquid Seasoning is low in fat, making it a healthier alternative to other flavorings that are high in fat and sodium that can lead to risks with your heart health.
It imparts that umami flavor. It is primarily characterized by that distinct umami flavor that adds depth and richness to dishes – that delicate balance between sweetness and saltiness that brings out the flavors of many of our favorite Filipino dishes.
It’s an affordable and easily accessible way to enhance the flavor of food. Priced affordably at Php79 (SRP) per 280ml bottle and widely available in leading retail outlets and online stores, Ellie Liquid Seasoning is very accessible, providing Filipino households with an inexpensive way to add flavor to dishes without breaking the bank.
It’s so easy to use. Need to imbue that umami flavor into your food? Just drizzle a bit of Ellie Liquid Seasoning into cooked food or pour into the marinade.
It’s proudly Philippine-made. Get your Pinoy Pride on and support this locally-made product, thereby supporting the country’s economy and the growth of its food industry.
It’s part of what makes the Pinoy dining experience unique. Filipino meals are usually served family style so condiments come into play to allow each family member to customize his meal according to his preferences. Ellie Liquid Seasoning is part of a long-standing tradition of being inclusive towards various personal tastes and preferences in every hapag-kainan.

Add to braising sauce for Beef Salpicao

So let’s give our very own liquid seasoning some love by exploring more ways to incorporate it into our cooking and by stocking our pantries with Ellie Liquid Seasoning.

It is available at leading retail outlets and online stores.

Know more about Ellie Liquid Seasoning and other Ellie PH products by following it on Facebook and Instagram.

Disclosure: Product samples were provided to facilitate this feature story.

Tag: umami

#NoticeToThePublic: Good eats abound at Public Eatery, Robinsons Magnolia